The present invention relates to a device and method for drawing together two bones or the like, particularly bones separated by a fracture.
Conventionally, fractured bone fragments, wounds, lacerations and incisions in the skin are closed by implanting surgical staples. Various surgical stapling devices have been developed to achieve this objective. In use, the tissue or the bone fragments to be joined together are placed side by side or moved closer together, and a surgical stapling device is used to drive a staple into the fragmented portions for holding the fragments in place until the wound is sufficiently healed or, for example, the bone fragments have fused together by the body's healing mechanism. Once the healing or fusion of the components is complete, the staple may then be taken out by using another device. The prior art is replete with surgical stapling devices which can be used to attain this objective. Prior art patents which disclose surgical stapling devices are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,391,401, 4,399,810, 4,470,532, 4,550,870, 4,582,237, 4,619,262, and 4,619,391. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,505,273 and 4,655,222 disclose the types of staple that may be used in a surgical stapling device for closing or suturing a wound or incision, and the U.S. Pat. No. 4,414,967 discloses a method of joining bone to bone tendon, and ligament to bone by using a power staple gun or rivet gun.
However, as it is known, it is critical that the two fragments which are to be joined, be aligned properly with respect to each other so that when the fusion between them takes place, the fragments join or fuse substantially in a position resembling the position of a natural, unbroken or unfractured fragment. For example, when two bone fragments are to be joined, the fragments are placed close together and a staple is then hammer or power driven into the fragments. However, due to the hammering action there is a substantial likelihood that the fragments would move from their initial position and an improper fusion of the fragments will take place. In addition, often a staple remains firmly affixed to the stapling device and thus it becomes a pain-staking process to remove it from the bone fragments of the patient.